Unless you're a user of Microsoft Small Business Server 2011, you probably paid absolutely no attention to the recent release note in which Intuit reported it was adding “support for Microsoft Small Business Server 2011 (SP1)” as part of the R4 update for QuickBooks 2017 Desktop Versions (QuickBooks Pro, QuickBooks Premier, QuickBooks Accountant, QuickBooks Enterprise).
While some users are relieved, believing this means they should no longer have any operational conflicts, and that Intuit support will not simply say, “Sorry, but you are on an unsupported operating system,” it really is a lack of what's being said that should be concerning to users.
Apparently, nobody really knows what this means, a couple of people I asked said, ‘what, I have no idea’ (or words to that effect). What is obvious is that one major conflict between QuickBooks, both 2016 and 2017 versions, and Microsoft Small Business Server 2011 has not been resolved as part of the ‘support for’ addition.
I’m talking about the port range conflicts between Microsoft DNS and the QuickBooks Database Server Manager.
Microsoft DNS is the implementation of domain name systems services provided in Microsoft operating systems. Not all Windows servers run, or run as, DNS Servers. However, in Microsoft Small Business Server 2011, Microsoft DNS runs as an essential service to resolve local network addresses by acting like a middle man in the peer to peer DNS infrastructure, while at the same time giving the full power of DNS to the local network.
Clients on the network also need the DNS Server for Active Directory to work, in order for many other services on the network to perform normally. For example, client backup doesn’t work unless DNS is operating. Microsoft DNS uses port range 55368-55372, and therein lies the basis of the trouble.
DNS Server service
You see, both QuickBooks 2016 and QuickBooks 2017 also try to use port range 55368-55372 in the operation of the network QuickBooks Database Server Manager, aka, QBDBMGRN.
When Microsoft DNS is up and running in Microsoft Small Business Server 2011, the QuickBooks Database Server will not start properly as a Windows service, and without this service running QuickBooks will simply not work in Multi-user mode.
It is possible for the two services to run in companion, but only if the QuickBooks Database Server is started as a windows service prior to Microsoft DNS starting.
Many QuickBooks users have reported that following instances of their server being shut-down, or going through a reboot perhaps secondary to an operating system update, when the server came back up, that QuickBooks could not be switched into multi-user mode.
The reason: The network QuickBooks Database Server was not running. A review of Windows services on the server would show the service as "stopped." Attempts to start the service would result in an error and leave the service stopped.
So, what are the alternatives when this conflict occurs?
Well, on an immediate basis it is possible to stop the Microsoft DNS Service, then start the QuickBooks Database Server, and then re-start the Microsoft DNS service after QuickBooks is up and running properly in multi-user mode.
While this approach works, it's far from a perfect approach, because it means that someone with Windows Server Administrative Rights must be able to perform the stop, start, re-start routine whenever the QuickBooks Database Server isn’t running.
A second approach is to try to change the "pecking order," so to speak, of the Windows services boot-up.
To do this, the QuickBooks Database Server service must be set to “Automatic,” while the Microsoft DNS Service must be set to “Automatic (Delayed Start).” In many instances, this will permit the QuickBooks Database Server to be up-and-running prior to the start-up of Microsoft DNS Service.
The third option takes some of us "techno-types" back to days of old (at least three years back) when we fooled QuickBooks into using more RAM than Intuit restricted it to, by changing the Windows Registry.
The latest "trick" involves altering the QBGLOBALAPPCONFIG.INI file to force QuickBooks to use ports that do not conflict with the Microsoft DNS. Those changes are beyond the scope of this article, because you must insure the changes you make are not conflicting with other port requirements.
In summary, I simply ask, shouldn’t "support for an operating system" mean the application will run in a normal manner within the confines and operating parameters of the operating system?
You typically do not expect the computer’s operating system to have to adapt to the applications running on it. It’s supposed to work the other way – applications are supposed to be written to work "with" the operating system.
Apparently, that's not the case where QuickBooks (desktop) is concerned, even if the latest release provides, “support for Microsoft Small Business Server 2011 (SP1.)”